Transcript

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>> In late October US president Donald Trump lifted a temporary ban on most refugee admissions to the US. Many believed this would mean greater numbers of refugees would be resettled here. But a Reuters analysis of State Department data shows just the opposite. Reuters Washington correspondent Yugani Twabadi.>> Advocates had hoped that as the ban was expiring the U.S. would allow in more refugees, but in fact what has happened is the opposite.

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Because of new restrictions that the administration put into place to replace the ban as it was expiring, we've actually seen a huge decrease in the number of refugees that have come into the United States since the lifting of the ban.>> The data showed the new restrictions created a far greater barrier to refugees than even Trump's temporary ban.

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>> The administration said that 11 countries, mostly in the Middle East and Africa, that send a great number of refugees to the United States each year, are too high risk. And so it's basically essentially paused for 90 days the admittance of refugees from those 11 countries while it conducts further security reviews.

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And that we've seen has led to a big decrease, whereas, in the last five weeks of the travel ban about 600 refugees from those countries were allowed in. In the five weeks right after, only 15, one-five refugees from those countries have been allowed in.>> The drop has alarmed refugee advocates who worry the White House may be trying to shutdown refugee admissions entirely.

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The Trump Administration has promised to crack down on both legal and illegal immigration and warned that refugees pose a security threat to the US.